Did you know that anxiety and depression are on the rise? According to the World Health Organization (WHO) there has been a 50% increase in the number of people suffering with anxiety and depression, that’s about 615 million people!
While there a lot of factors that are contributing to these increasing rates one main one is leading a hectic, modern life. For many people their days are fueled by caffeine and sugar to keep them alert during meetings and productive at work, with no time to take lunch, and capped off with a late night workout it makes winding down in the evenings near impossible. While the body wants to crash, the brain is still going like a hamster running on a wheel. This ultimately leads to sleep deprivation and the cycle repeats.
The combination of adrenal fatigue, insomnia, and poor nutrition is a recipe for a perfect storm. There are many ways to approach treating anxiety and depression but one very simple habit to slow life down is meditation.
Meditation is basically a form of training the brain to improve things like attention and emotional self-regulation. There’s many ways of meditating but just to list a few: yoga, chi gong, tai chi, mantras, and mindfulness.
What is mindfulness?
Mindfulness has received quite a bit of press in the last while and it has great research backing it now. Mindfulness is the act of “non-judgemental attention to experiences in the present moment” that through attention control, emotion regulation (improving the ability to cope with stressors and increasing positive moods), and self-awareness (improves self-esteem and self-acceptance) you ultimately gain self-regulation and effortless being. Doesn’t that sound amazing?
Not only does mindfulness meditation have a positive effect on your overall state of being but recent research even suggests that it may actually change the structure and function of the brain as a whole!
Read on for my top 3 mindfulness meditation apps of 2016.
Benefits of Mindfulness Meditation
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Top 3 Mindfulness & Meditation Apps of 2016
1. STOP, BREATHE & THINK
Price
FREE
What I love
Great for beginners, guides you through checking in with your body and emotions, then selects the appropriate guided meditation for you. Plus, it tracks your progress.
iOS, Android, Web
2. SMILING MIND
Price
FREE
What I love
An app for all ages! It has organized programs for ages 7 up to adult making it a great option for the whole family. Plus, it’s awesome for eductors with built in lesson plans and meditations designed with the classroom in mind!
iOS, Android, Web
3. HEADSPACE
Price
Free for first level (‘Take 10’) then monthly subscription
What I love
Headspace is easy to use with a great user interface. With the subscription service you gain access to all the lessons to get you meditating like an all-star. No matter if you’re getting psyched up for a competition or working on your relationship there’s unique meditations to get you through it.
iOS, Android, Amazon, Web
References
1. World Health Organization (2016). Investing in treatment for depression and anxiety leads to fourfold return. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/depression-anxiety-treatment/en/
2. Tang, Y.-Y., Hölzel, B. K., & Posner, M. I. (2015). The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 16, 213–225. http://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3916
3. American Psychological Association (2012). What are the benefits of mindfulness? http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/07-08/ce-corner.aspx
